I own two of these and they are great , if you also find an MC202 you can sequence one sh101 + the inbuilt MC202 synth ( basically an sh101 ) and get some cool stuff happening.

You can hear a Sh101 used as a bass synth on my track 'The Dancing Contest' on myspace.com/duffkeys

you can usually find these in pretty good condition and there are lots of them around , well worth it.

Rating: 4 out of 5
posted Thursday-Nov-20-2008 at 19:02

Relic
a part-time user
from USA
writes:

why I never bought one of these SH-101's back in 82-83 i will never know! Man, have I been missing some fat ass BASS or what!!!! Got to thank good old ebay for this find. $500. Every time I sit down to play with this monster i comwe up with something new and better then before! What this guy can do bass wise is unbelievable. GET ONE! LOVE ONE! It will always be there for you. You will be so happy! and so will your speakers! They will sing to you like never been before!

Rating: 5 out of 5
posted Saturday-May-24-2008 at 13:07

Deyan
a professional user
from Homestead Florida
writes:

Whats up peoples! Well i've had my sh101 for bout 10 months now.. and feel i can review it properly... at first glance it really looks very simple and in fact it is a very simple cleaned layed-out synth hehe props on roland's design! I wish they would go back to they're old designs... as far as construction is concerned, its plastic but durable, heck i got mines from japan and it arrived like it was released last week very clean regardless of it's age so if taken care off it will last for plently of years to come. Now for the sounds... whew im blown away, i got an extensive collection of synths (nordlead2,evolver,jp8000,hartmann neuron,pulse,mc505,motif,etc.. and man this lil guy sure brought something to the table, the bass is fat and just super sub'ed out hehe excuse the slang, will work great for electronica but i also see it reallllllly good for Dub if thats your thing. it self oscillates fast as hell creating subs that really pump, i also got it to do vocal sounds that i thought wouldnt be capable of and to my surprise it did pretty good against the nord in that aspect. this synth is simple but man its capable of so much due mainly to its great design very well layed out and the sliders well atleast to me are easier to tweak than knobs so being this is mainly sliders except a couple knobs it really helps to tweak the shit out of it... at times i feel like others that its limited but man this thing doesn't stop surprising me? it's got soul and flavor add a delay and ur in the game, i personally don't like using distortion unless its used very subtle just to give it more warmth, the kicks it can produce are excellent like everyone states very analog!!! very fat! i can't stress get urself one u won't regret it yeh theres synths in the market with newer technology but not necessary better, this lil guy really holds it down with the newer stuff plus it got more balls than most new synths i'ved tried out... they sure don't build em like they use to. Roland corp if ur reading this go back to ur roots.. bring back the sh101's the jupiters the 808's and 909's what the fuck has happened to the market? i just dont get it :( enuff chit chat believe the hype get one ASAP I love my SH101

Rating: 5 out of 5
posted Friday-Oct-26-2007 at 09:23

Sudad (Hi-Lite Scan)
a professional user
from Germany
writes:

It's one of my main bass-generators in the studio. I use the SH-101 especially for cool, deep and smooth sounding House-Basses like a real electric bass. I enhanced the sound of the SH-101 with a DBX-166A compressor. I combined it with a Doepfer CV-to-Midi-converter. I use the SH-101 regulary in Deep House and Drum&Bass productions. For high end deep and smooth basses the SH-101 is a must. Very cool!!!

Rating: 5 out of 5
posted Friday-Aug-31-2007 at 11:40

Bill Jenkins
a hobbyist user
from USA
writes:

I just bought one on eBay after months of stalking. This is exactly the synth I would have designed if given the choice. Some like the looks, some don't. To me, it looks tough and mean. It also sounds psychotic. The best thing about this synth is that all the sound variations are available in an instant. It's easy to access any change right there on the board, and there are a lot of them. What makes that so good is that it inspires. Once you've played with this thing for a while, it encourages growth rather than forcing you to fight for it. As for the single-oscillator fatness issue: I've listened to a lot of destructive sub-bass in my life, and this thing compares favorably to all of it. I mean...you can produce a sine wave as low as TEN HERTZ, and drop in whatever harmonics you want with the PWM, to produce the ugliest, loveliest bass on earth. I have spent a lot of time making subtle alterations to waves somewhere between 15 and 30 Hz, and this synth lets you get in there with fury. It can make waves that make you feel like you're returning to the womb, or melting into the surrounding universe, or like the universe and your head are going to flip inside-out. It is deep, deep, deep in every sense of the word. There is no reason to pay more than $450 for one in great condition with accessories. Be patient, and you're in for a treat.